Ricky Nye is one of Cincinnati’s busiest piano players, and it has been that way for a long time. In fact, Nye began gigging in his uncle Earl Neiheisel’s band and learning the ways of a working musician at the age of 12.

“He taught music on Glenmore Avenue in Cheviot for over 60 years and touched a lot of people,” Nye says of his uncle. “A lot of folks grew up taking lessons from him, and then their kids would take lessons from him, and then their kids would take lessons from him. He passed about five years ago.”

Nye can trace portions of his current-day songbook back to his uncle’s band, such as the standards that round out Nye’s repertoire of blues, boogie-woogie and New Orleans piano tunes. And now it’s Nye who’s the mentor. The protégé is Ben Levin, a 16-year-old piano player working the bar circuit and making a name on the local blues scene. Both Nye and Levin are playing this weekend’s Winter Blues Fest.

Levin started taking lessons from Nye when he was eight, and he was a quick learner.

“He had a good time,” Nye reports. “He had a good approach to the keys. At first, I was concerned that dad was pushing, but he started developing an appetite for this stuff. His memory and retention for music is really astounding.”

In November Nye picked Levin as a last-minute fill-in at the Blues & Boogie Piano Summit, Nye’s annual piano-player showcase at the Southgate House.

“I had a pianist cancel, someone who was coming over from France. Their visa got hung up. After running down a whole bunch of names, trying to figure out who I’m gonna get, I said, ‘Wow, Ben.’ And Ben killed it. He killed it,” Nye raves. “He saved the day. He’s also a great singer. Great, natural singer. No affectation or anything. He’s just got it going on.

“And he’s got a great perspective on blues. He’s not coming into blues backwards through British Invasion and going back. He’s starting at the roots and coming up. A lot of that is attributed to his dad, Aron (of the local blues band the Heaters, who are also playing at the Winter Blues Fest). His taste is pretty fine when it comes to blues. It’s not blues rock. It’s everything but.”